The first “urban century” in history has arrived:
a majority of the world’s population now resides in cities and their
surrounding suburbs. Urban expansion marches on, and the planning and design of
future cities requires attention to such diverse issues as human migration,
public health, economic restructuring, water supply, climate and sea-level
change, and much more. This important book draws on two decades of pioneering
social and ecological studies in Baltimore to propose a new way to think about
cities and their social, political, and ecological complexity. Readers will
gain fresh perspectives on how to study, build, and manage cities in innovative
and sustainable ways.

J. Morgan Grove is team leader and research scientist at the Baltimore Field Station,
USDA Forest Service. Mary L. Cadenasso is professor and ecologist,
Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis. Steward T. A.
Pickett is Distinguished Senior Scientist, Cary Institute of Ecosystem
Studies, Millbrook, N.Y. Gary E. Machlis is a member of the faculty of
Clemson University and science adviser to the director of the U.S. National
Park Service. William R. Burch, Jr. is Hixon Professor Emeritus of
natural resource management and senior research scientist, Yale University School
of Forestry and Environmental Studies.